Cabinet for an exercising apparatus



, J. J. COOPER.

CABINET FOR AN EXERCISING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. 8,1919.

Eamnte Apr, 13, 53 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

INVENTOR J 9HN J CO WI T/VESSES J. J. COOPER.

CABINET FOR AN EXERCISING APPARATUS.

APPLICATION FILED MAR. B, 1919.

Patented Apr. 13, 1920.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

WI TNESSES A TTORNEVS JOHN J. COOPER, OF STAMFORD, CONNECTICUT.

CABINET FOR AN EXEBCISING- APPARATUS.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Apr. 13, 1920.

Application filed March 8, 1918. Serial No. 281,368.

To (ZZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JOHN J. CoorER, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of Stamford, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, have invented a new and Improved Cabinet for an Exercising Apparatus, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description, this being in part a division of the application for Letters Patent for an exercising apparatus, Serial No. 266,227, filed by me on December 11, 1918.

The object of the invention is to provide a new and improved cabinet for an exercising apparatus arranged to permit the user to conveniently enter the cabinet or move out of the same whenever it is desired to do so. Another object is to permit of readily disassembling the parts of the cabinet and to fold the same with a view to take up very little room for storing or transporting purposes. Another object is to render the cabinet exceedingly tight to confine the vapor or steam within the cabinet with aview to insure the desired beneficial effect on the user of the cabinet and its exercising apparatus. Another object is to confine the users body except the head within the cabinet and to allow the user to control the heat within'the cabinet. Another object is to'provide protecting means for the fabric cover to prevent the latter from being soiled by the perspiration of the user of the cabinet.

With these and other objects in view, the invention consists of certain novel features of construction as hereinafter shown and described audthen specifically pointed out in the claims.

A' practical embodiment of the invention is represented in the accompanying drawingsforming a part of this specification, in which similar characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the views.

Figure 1 is a sectional side elevation of the cabinet with the exercising apparatus mounted therein;

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the cabinet casing or body with the parts in disassembled position and with the top removed;

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the top; Fig. 4 is a reduced perspective view of the protecting cape;

Fig. 5 is a perspective view of the neckband or collar; *Fig. 6 is an enlarged sectional side elevation of the connection between the cover, the cape and the neck band; and

F 1g. 'Zis an enlarged sectional side elevation of one of the'fastening devices for detachably connecting the base end of the protecting cape to the frame of the top.

4 The exercising apparatus shown in Fig. 1 comprises an individual cabinet 10, an exercising apparatus 11 mounted in the cabinet, and a heat and vapor generating means 12 likewise arranged in the cabinet 10 for heating the latter and filling it with vapor to induce perspiration of the person actuating the exercising machine 11 at the time to produce physical exertion while undergoing perspiration. The cabinet 10 is in the form of a casing or boxdike structure made in two main parts adapted to be joined together in a vertical plane extending through the longitudinal median line of the cabinet, as will be readily understood by reference to Fig. 2. The sections of the cabinet casing comprise base portions 20 and 21 to which are secured the sides 22, 23 and the front sections 24 and 25. The back of the cabinet casing is formed by two doors 26, 27 connected by spring hinges 28, 29 to the door sides 30 and 31 secured to the base sections 20, 21 and the sides 22, 23. The hinges 28 and 29 are arranged to normally hold the doors 26, 27 in closed position and the free sides of the doors 26 and 27 are provided with rabbets 32, 3'3 engaging one or the other when the doors are closed to provide a tight joint at the doors.

In order to fasten the two casing sections together use is made of battens 10 and 4-1 adapted to be secured to the front and back portions of the bases 20 and 21 by the use of screws 42 and 13 to hold the two sections of the casing fastened together. It is understood that when the battens 4:0 and 41 are removed the two casing sections can be readily handled and shipped from one place to another. The side 23 is provided with a suitable door 45 arranged adjacent the heating and vapor generating means 12 to thus give access thereto whenever it is necessary to refill the said means with water or otherwise control the same. 1

The casing sections are provided at the front of the open top with shelf sections 50, 51 secured to the corresponding side 22 and the front section 24;, or the side 23 and the front section 25, and the adjacent edges of the said shelf sections 50 and 51 are provided with tongue and groove 52, to form a tight joint when the casing sections are assembled and thus provide a shelf practically of unbroken continuity. A. top frame 60 is connected by hinges 61, 62 to the shelf sections 50 and 51 and the said frame is provided with a flange 63 at the sides and back fitting over the upper ends of the sides 22, 23 and to doors 26, 27 to provide a tight joint with the casing and to hold the doors 26, 27 in closed position as long as the frame 60 is in its normal position of rest on the top of the casing. It is understood that when the frame 60 is swung upward the doors 26, 27 are unlocked to permit of readily opening the doors for a person to step into the casing or out of the same. To the frame 60 is secured the base 70 of a cover 71 made of canvas or other suitable flexible material, and the cover 71 is of conical shape and provided with a series of rings 72, 7 3, 74 and 75 gradually decreasing in diameter with the uppermost ring 7 5 forming the neck. opening 76 of the cover for the passage of the users head and neck. By the arrangement described the cover 71 readily fits users of different stature and at the same time allows free swaying movement in any direction of the body of the users.

In order to protect the cover 71 from the users perspiration use is made of a cape 80 of cotton, linen or similar textile material of approximately pyramidal form provided at the base with hooks 81 adapted to hook onto short coil springs 82 fastened to the under side of the top frame 60, as plainly shown in Figs. 1 and 7. The upper end of the cape 80 is provided with a collar or neckband 83 having a hem 84 containing a draw string 85. The neckband 83 is adapted to be passed around the upper end of the cover 71 and the draw string 85 is adapted to be drawn tightly below the ring 75 to detachably fasten the neckband 83 in position on the upper end of the cover 71. A conical collar 90 of cotton, linen or other'textile fabric is adapted to be placed around the users neck and the collar 90 is provided at its lower and upper edges with hems 91 and 92 containing draw strings 93, 94, of which the draw string 93 is adapted to draw the lower end of the collar 90 tightly around the upper end of the cover 71(see Fig. 6) to detachably fasten the collar 90 extcriorly to the cover 71. The draw string 94 serves to draw the upper end of the collar 90 tightly around the users neck to prevent any of the vapor contained within the cabinet from escaplng by way of the neck opening 76. It Wlll be noticed that the cape 80 and the collar 90 can be readily detached from the cover and the collar 90 can also be readily detached from the users neck to permit of hanging the cape and collar after they have.

been used.

aser/7e The cape 80 is provided with a slit 86 and the cover 71 is provided with a normally closed armhole 87 to permit the user to thrust an arm through the slit 86 and the armhole 87 to reach the controlling devices 100 mounted on the shelf section 51 and which controlling devices control the heating and vapor generating means 12.

The doors 26, 27 are automatically opened on the user swinging the frame 60 upward into open position, and for this purpose the following arrangement is made: On the under side of the sides of the frame 60 are secured brackets 110 on which are fulcrumed arms 111 provided with slots 112 engaged by pins 113 held on the forward ends of bars 114 mounted to slide near their rear ends in bearings 115 attached to the sides 22, 28. The rear ends of the bars 114 abut against keepers 116 attached to the inner faces of the doors 26, 27 near the hinges 28, 29, and hence when the frame 60 is swung upward and the ends of the slots 112 reach the pins 113 and a further upward swinging movement is given to the frame 60, then a forward pull is exerted on the bars 114 whereby the doors 26, 27 are swung outward into open position to permit a person to readily enter the cabinet or move out of the same after the use of the exercising apparatus. It is understood that when the frame 60 is swung downward into closed position the doors 26 and 27 are swung shut by their spring hinges 28, 29 and consequently the bars 114 are moved forward to the normal position shown in Figs. 1 and 2.

It is understood that the exercising machine 11 held in the cabinet does not form part of this invention and consequently it is not deemed necessary to describe this exercising machine in detail.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent:

1. A cabinet for an exercising apparatus, comprising a cabinet body having a door for the ingress and egress of the person making use of the cabinet, the said cabinet body having a top provided with a hinged frame and a cover of a fabric material secured to the said frame, the said cover having a head and neck opening for the passage of the head of the user, and a protecting cape arranged within the said cover and detachably connected with the top.

2. A cabinet for an exercising apparatus, comprising a cabinet body having a door for the ingress and egress of the person making use of the cabinet, the said cabinet body having a top provided with a hinged frame and a cover of a fabric material secured to the said frame, the said cover having a head and neck opening for the passage of the head of the user, and a protecting cape arranged within the said cover and having its with the said frame, the cape having a lower or base end detachably connected with the frame of the top and having its upper neck portion detachably connected with the said cover at the head and neck opening thereof.

3. A cabinet for an exercising apparatus, comprising a cabinet body having a door for the ingress and egress of the person making use of the cabinet, the said cabinet body having a top provided with a hinged frame and a cover of a fabric material secured to the said frame, the said cover having a head and neck opening for the passage of the head of the user, a protecting cape arranged within the said cover and detachably connected with the top, and a collar adapted to fit the neck of the user and detachably connected with the said cover at the neck opening thereof.

4. A cabinet for an exercising apparatus, comprising a box body provided at the rear with a door, a top having a hinged frame and a skirt-like cover of a fabric material, and having its base attached to the said frame, the cover being provided with rings spaced apart and gradually diminishing in diameter, the smallest ring forming with the cover a central head and neck opening, a protecting cape arranged within the cover and having its base detachably connected neckband adapted to fold over the wall of the neck opening of the cover and a draw string on the said neckband to allow of tying the neckband to the cover at the smallest ring thereof.

5. A cabinet for an exercising apparatus, comprising a body provided at the rear with a door, a top having a hinged frame and a skirt-like cover of a fabric material, and having its base attached to the said frame, the cover being provided with rings spaced apart and gradually diminishing in diameter, the smallest ring forming with the cover a central head and neck opening, and a conical collar provided with drawstrings at the upper and lower edges, the upper drawstring serving to close the upper edge of the collar tight around the users neck and the lower drawstring serving to fasten the lower edge of the collar eXteriorly to the wall of the head and neck opening of the cover below the smallest ring thereof.

6. A cabinet for an exercising apparatus, comprising a casing made in sections joined together along a vertical plane passing through a longitudinal median line extending from the front to the back, the casing having a shelf at the front of an open top and having a base, transverse battens detachably secured to the front and back of the base and a top provided with a frame hinged to the shelf and a cover on the frame, the said frame having a depending flange engaging the sides and back of the casing to hold the upper ends of the casing sections in closed position.

7. A cabinet for an exercising apparatus, comprising a casing made in sections joined together along a vertical plane passing through a longitudinal median line extending from the front to the back, the casing having a shelf at the front of an open top and having a base, transverse battens de tachably secured to the front and back of the base, and a top provided with a frame hinged to the shelf and a cover on the frame, the said frame having a depending flange engaging the sides and back of the casing to hold the upper ends of the casing sections in closed position, the back of the casing being provided with hinged doors one for each casing section.

JOHN J. COOPER. 

